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Mexican Cornbread Layered Salad

Yield: 8 Servings (9X13-inch pan)
Prep Time: 1 hour 25 minutes
Total Time: 1 hour 25 minutes

Ingredients

Salad:

  • 3 cups chopped romaine lettuce
  • 3 cups cubed or crumbled cornbread (see note)
  • 1 (15-ounce) can black beans, rinsed and drained
  • 1 ½ cups corn kernels, fresh or frozen, thawed if frozen
  • 1 red bell pepper, small diced
  • 1 (15-ounce) can black olives, drained and sliced
  • 3 green onions, finely chopped
  • 4 roma tomatoes, liquid squeezed out and chopped
  • 2 cups shredded cheddar cheese

Dressing:

  • ⅓ cup regular or light mayonnaise
  • ⅓ cup light or regular sour cream or plain yogurt
  • ⅓ cup lowfat buttermilk
  • ¾ cup chopped fresh cilantro
  • ¼ cup fresh lime juice, from about 2 limes
  • 2 teaspoons ground cumin
  • ½ teaspoon salt
  • 1 teaspoon chili powder

Instructions 

  • In a blender, combine all the dressing ingredients until smooth. Refrigerate until ready to use (this can be made several days in advance).
  • In a 9X13-inch pan, layer the ingredients in the following order: lettuce, cornbread, beans, corn, red pepper, olives, green onions, tomatoes and cheese.
  • Pour the dressing over the cheese. Cover with plastic wrap or foil and refrigerate for 1-2 hours. Serve chilled.

Notes

Drying the Ingredients: make sure each ingredient is well dried before layering (like if the lettuce has been recently washed or after rinsing the beans) because you really don't want the cornbread to get soggy; major ick factor
Cornbread: I made an adapted version of my favorite cornbread for this recipe, reducing the sugar to 1/3 cup and using 1/2 cup coconut oil. I cut the cooled cornbread into small cubes. I had a bit leftover after I measured out the 3 or so cups - makes a great snack!
Layering: this salad can be layered in a variety of ways. If you want more dressing throughout the salad, add 1/2 of the dressing part way through the layers. You can also use a trifle dish to layer this but I like using a 9X13-inch dish because if you are scooping it out for a crowd, it's much easier to get all the ingredients in one scoop versus scooping into a really deep dish. Make sense?
Main Dish: adding grilled chicken to this (or on the side) would make a fantastic main course.